Is it safe to eat expired canned food?
When manufacturers produce a product they put an expiration date on it. This does not mean the food is not good after that date because there is a large safety factor added to the expiry date so the food is still good. The message on the container usually says something like “Best if used before 2/2/2009”. Although the food is still good, the longer it stays on the shelf the more likely the flavor and taste will diminish. As the post above indicates, if there is visible damage to the can such as bulging it is probably contaminated with a gas generating microorganism and should be discarded without opening.
